Nov. 15, 2008

LOWELL, Mass. - Michael Budd (Burlington, Ont.) scored his first career goal and Nevin Hamilton (Ashland, Mass.) stopped 22 shots to earn his fourth career shutout as UMass Lowell defeated No. 20 Massachusetts, 2-0, Saturday night in Hockey East action at the Mullins Center.

The River Hawks have won two straight and four of six. They improve to 5-4-0 overall and 3-2-0 in league play. The Minutemen have lost two of their last three and fall to 5-3-1 overall and 3-2-1 in league play.

"This was a well contested game by both teams," said UMass Lowell head coach Blaise MacDonald. "UMass has a lot talented players and they play a terrific system. It's not a surprise that they had success last night and success this season. I thought they brought out the best in us. It was a game that whichever team blinked first had a chance to win. We're fortunate that Mike Budd scored a big goal in the second. That was a key moment."

Budd opened the scoring at the 9:23 mark of the second period when his turnaround shot from the left face off circle beat UMass goaltender Paul Dainton (Genelle, B.C.) for his first career tally. David Vallorani (Hamilton, Ont.) and Nick Monroe (Groton, Mass.) assisted on the goal.

Sophomore center Scott Campbell made it 2-0 at 12:03 on the River Hawks' third power play of the contest when he one-timed a centering pass from Vallorani. Nick Schaus (Buffalo, N.Y.) sent the puck up the wall to Vallorani and picked up the secondary assist.

The Campbell man-advantage goal snapped UMass' streak of 29 straight opponent power plays killed. The River Hawks finished the night 1-for-3 on the man-advantage.

Hamilton stopped all 22 shots he face, including nine in the third period to record his fourth career shutout. Hamilton, who has started three straight games for UML, improved to 2-1-0 with the win.

"I didn't think Nevin Hamilton was overly tested in the first two periods, but he made some enormous saves for us in the third period," said MacDonald. "Under the circumstances with us losing Carter Hutton and him having to come in and play, I think he's done beyond an exceptional job."

Dainton also made 22 saves, but a goal in each the first and third periods to take the loss. Dainton falls to 3-2-0 on the season.

The River Hawks had an 11-5 edge in shots in the second period and out-shot the Minutemen 24-22 for the game. In addition to going 1-for-3 on the power play, UML was 4-for-4 on the penalty kill.

"As with most games in Hockey East the team that wins special teams has a chance to win," MacDonald said. "We did a great job on the penalty kill and were fortunate to bury a power play goal."

The River Hawks return to the ice Friday night when they host Providence College. UML hosts Northeastern on Saturday night. The Minutemen are next in action Friday night when they travel to Boston College.

Game Notes:

The River Hawks have scored a power play goal in six straight games ... Budd is the third player in the last two games to record his first career goal. Matt Ferreria and Sammy D'Agostino each netted their first career tallies Friday night against New Hampshire ... Nick Monroe (0g, 2a) Nick Schaus (0g, 2a) and Scott Campbell (1g, 1) each have two-game point streaks ... David Vallorani leads the team with seven assists and has three multi-assist games this season.